OHIO — Refunds totaling more than $24.5 million might be waiting for an estimated 32,100 Ohioans who did not file a federal tax return for 2010, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced March 19. Nationwide, almost $760 million awaits about 918,600 taxpayers.

To collect the money, these taxpayers must file their 2010 tax returns with the IRS no later than April 15.

“The window is quickly closing for people who are owed refunds from 2010 who haven’t filed a tax return,” said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. “We encourage students, part-time workers and others who haven’t filed for 2010 to look into this before time runs out on April 15.”

The IRS estimates that half the potential refunds for 2010 are more than $571.

According to the IRS, some people might not have filed because they had too little income to require filing a tax return even though they had taxes withheld from their wages or made quarterly estimated payments. In cases where a return was not filed, the law provides most taxpayers with a three-year window of opportunity for claiming a refund. If no return is filed to claim a refund within three years, the money becomes property of the U.S. Treasury.

The law requires that the return be properly addressed, mailed and postmarked by that date. There is no penalty for filing a late return qualifying for a refund. The median potential refund for Ohioans who didn’t file in 2010 is $560.

The IRS reminds taxpayers seeking a 2010 refund that their checks may be held if they have not filed tax returns for 2011 and 2012. In addition, the refund will be applied to any amounts still owed to the IRS or their state tax agency, and may be used to offset unpaid child support or past-due federal debts, such as student loans.

In addition, many low-and-moderate income workers might not have claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). For 2010, the credit is worth as much as $5,666. The thresholds for 2010 were:

$43,352 ($48,362 if married filing jointly) for those with three or more qualifying children;

$40,363 ($45,373 if married filing jointly) for people with two qualifying children;

$35,535 ($40,545 if married filing jointly) for those with one qualifying child; and

$13,460 ($18,470 if married filing jointly) for people without qualifying children.

Current and prior year tax forms and instructions are available on the Forms and Publications page of www.IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM. Taxpayers who are missing Forms W-2, 1098, 1099 or 5498 for 2010, 2011 or 2012 should request copies from their employer, bank or other payer. If these efforts are unsuccessful, taxpayers can get a free transcript showing information from these year-end documents by going to www.IRS.gov. Taxpayers also can file Form 4506-T to request a transcript of their tax return.